Latin American currencies broadly firmed against the dollar on Thursday, as surprisingly upbeat trade data from China and hints that Beijing officials will limit losses in the yuan eased growth worries for now. After reeling from worries in the past week about an escalating US-China trade war denting global growth, emerging markets and other risk assets breathed a sigh of relief after trade data showed July exports grew more than expected in China amid US tariff pressure.
Signs that the People's Bank of China was stepping in to stabilize the yuan also helped bring some poise to the markets. "The PBOC set the dollar's reference rate above CNY 7.0, but not as high as anticipated, and this has seen the yuan strengthen modestly today," said Marc Chandler, chief market strategist at Bannockburn Global Forex. Brazil's real rose about 0.5%, indicating optimism after the lower house of Congress on Wednesday approved a far-reaching pension overhaul bill, which now has to be passed by the Senate.
The bill raises the minimum retirement age and reduces some workers' benefits, lowering the cost of a generous social security system that has become unsustainable and was fueling Brazil's rising public debt.